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Bretton Alexander Executive Director for Space X PRIZE Foundation. X PRIZE Foundation. Not-for-profit educational foundation Offers incentive prizes to create radical breakthroughs for the benefit of all humanity Ansari X PRIZE for Suborbital Spaceflight
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Bretton Alexander Executive Director for Space X PRIZE Foundation
X PRIZE Foundation • Not-for-profit educational foundation • Offers incentive prizes to create radical breakthroughs for the benefit of all humanity • Ansari X PRIZE for Suborbital Spaceflight • $10M prize claimed in 2004 by SpaceShipOne • $10M Archon X PRIZE for Genomics • Rapid, affordable, complete human genome sequencing • $10 M Progressive Automotive X PRIZE • Mass producible, desirable cars that get >100 mpge • Future Prizes: • Education, Global Development, Life Sciences, Energy & Environment, Exploration
What is the Google Lunar X PRIZE? • $30,000,000 in cash prizes • $20M 1st place • $5M 2nd place • $5M in Performance Bonuses • Open to world-wide competition • Privately financed teams must: • Land a robot on surface of the Moon • Explore the Moon by moving at least 500m (1/3 of a mile) • Transmit two “Mooncasts,” packages of high definition video and imagery • Bonuses encourage: • Roving further along the lunar surface • Visiting man-made hardware • Surviving a lunar night • Diverse teams • Finding water ice
Google Lunar X PRIZE • Global Impact • >1,500 inquiries from >80 nations • Teams • 14 fully registered teams • Additional 4 “Letter of Intent” signatories • Headquartered in 5 nations: • Isle of Man, Italy, Malaysia, Romania, USA • Work being performed in more than 30 countries
Preferred Providers • SpaceX : 10% Discount on all Falcon LVs • Universal Space Networks: Offering 50% discount on communication services (passes) for the spacecraft while in transit to the Moon and for 30 Earth Days of operations on the lunar surface. • SETI : Free downlink services through the Allen Telescope Array • Space Florida : $2M Bonus Prize if winner launches from Florida • AGI: Free seat license for STK (>$150,000 value)
Why Are We Doing This? • Educate the global public about the benefits of space exploration • Inspire and excite the world about science, technology, engineering, and math • Incentivize and qualify new engineers and entrepreneurial companies able to design, build, deliver, and operate space hardware • Lower the costs of space exploration, opening the space frontier to new ideas and new participants • Spin off new technologies which will have dramatic global benefit • Distribute compelling content generated by teams
Are Private Missions Possible? • NASA-funded study indicates victory likely within 4 years • Expected cost between $30-100M • Seeking venture capital, sponsorship, in-kind contributions, wealthy individuals • Challenges • Fundraising • Power • Temperature swing • Daylight 253˚ F (123˚ C), • Shadow -387˚ F (-233˚ C) • Communications • 2.7 sec time delay • Bandwidth limited by power • Size limited by cost of launch vehicle
Education • Online • Interactive learning opportunities for educators, students and parents • Science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education • Engaging outside the classroom • BotBall robotics competition • National Science Teachers Association • Universities using prize as teaching tool • MIT • University of Michigan • University of Maryland • International Space University • University of Stuttgart • UK universities • Many others…
Northrop Grumman Lunar Lander Challenge • $2M in prizes provided by NASA’s Centennial Challenges program • Sponsored by Northrop Grumman Corp • Meant to stimulate the development of industrial capabilities that will assist in NASA’s return to the Moon. • Specifically, demands private teams build rockets similar to a “lunar ferry” capable of hopping between lunar orbit and the surface of the Moon.
Prize History • Announced May 5, 2006 • 4 teams register, 1 team flies in 2006 • 8 teams register, 1 team flies in 2007 • 9 teams register, 2 teams fly in 2008 • Teams devoted more than 60,000 person-hours and more than $6 million • Drove maturation of the regulatory process • Exceeded the most similar gov’t program in almost every category • DC-X: Two years, ~$95 M